Fighter Strategy

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First off - more than anything I want to learn more about proper use of fighters. So I am putting together a base framework. --KBJ07675 03:46, 31 August 2007 (CEST)

Take care that these strategies are from "the old" space combat system prior to Host 213 and are likely to be outdated.

Contents 1 Reference Links 2 Race Analysis 3 Small vs Large 4 Free Floating vs Carrier Based 5 Key Strategy and Uses of Fighters 5.1 Scouting 5.2 Commerce Raiding 5.3 Enemy Fleet Ord Suppression 5.4 Anti-Ship 5.5 Anti-Fighers 5.6 Taking Down Base Shields 6 Exotic Techs 6.1 Exotic Tech Pro's 6.1.1 Stealth Fighters 6.1.2 Nem Shields 6.1.3 Fighter ECM Box 6.2 ET Con's 6.2.1 PD Boost 6.2.2 Energized Sand 6.2.3 Anti-Fighter Computer 7 Countering Fighters 7.1 Defensive Measures 7.1.1 Stellar Matter Launchers 7.1.2 Minefields 7.1.3 Sand Casters 7.1.4 Point Defenses 7.1.5 Nemesis Torpedoes 8 V.S High Armor Fighter

[edit] Reference Links

• Fighters
• Fighter Stats
• Wing

[edit] Race Analysis

Race	Range				Cost
	<=35ly	<=75ly	<200ly	>=200ly	<=20MC	<=50MC	<200MC	>=200MC
Aczanny			2,3	1		1	2	3
Birdmen	1,2		3			1	2	3
Centaurs	1		2	3	1	2		3
CoM				1,2,3		1	2,3
Crystals		1,2,3			1,2,3
Cyborg			1,2,3				1,2,3
Empire	1,2			3	1	2	3
Draconians			1,2,3				1	2,3
IMT		1,2	3		1		2,3
Lizards		2,3	1				3	1,2
Peeps	1		2,3			1	2	3
Privateers	1,2,3				1		2,3
Rebels				1,2,3	1		2,3
Coalition	1	2	3		1		2,3
Robots			1,2,3		1	2	3
Scavs		2,3	1			1		2,3
Feds	1	2	3		1		2	3
Solorians	2,3	1				2,3	3
Stormers	1,2		3				1	2,3
UEA	1			2,3			1,2,3
UA		1	2,3			1	2,3

[edit] Small vs Large

The chance that a fighter hit inflicts damage to a ship if the ships has the hull mass m and the fighter count is c is given by:

P(Hit inflicts damage| targetmass=m & FighterCount=c) =[(1-m/500)+c/1000]*0.99+0.01*[1+(1-m/500)*c/1000]

(the m-terms are at least 0 and the c-terms at max 1)

So with m>500 one has

P=c/1000*0.99+0.01

So small wings only have a small effectivity.

One the other side if m=100 and c=10 for example we have

P=(4/5+10/1000)*0.99+0.01*[1+4/5*10/1000)=0.81

Conclusion - Use Small wings vs. Low Mass Ships (100 or so) but Large wings 100 or more for Ships approaching mass of 500.

[edit] Free Floating vs Carrier Based

[edit] Key Strategy and Uses of Fighters

[edit] Scouting

Nothing compares to the CoM and Rebel wing for finding exactly what is on every nearby star and planet. With a range of 400, anything within 200 lyrs of a ship or base is a known quantity. The wing will also often disrupt any commerce allowing for the rapid attack of outlying bases. If the fighters do not have range, this stratagem does not work. The debate is whether you should send 1 fighter wings or 10 fighter wings. Personally I use 10 fighter wings as these can be built more than one a turn per fighter plant. One fighter wings must be built and created by replenishing the fighters on a carrier with just one fighter on the base below.

[edit] Commerce Raiding

[edit] Enemy Fleet Ord Suppression

Large numbers of small wings can be used to deplete enemy fleet ordnance. This is effectively done when large numbers of small wings fight first wave forcing the attackers to use their Flake Cannons and Sandcasters and other ord based Point Defenses to defeat the fighters. if enough wings are involved then they will successfully deplete an enemy attacking force of all its ordinance. thus leaving them with no ability to fire PTT's or other ordinance based weapons at the second wave when it enters the VCR. this is very effective against races with bonus to ordnance based weapons. as they get no bonus if they have no ord. it works more effectively if the enemy has Flake Cannons and or Sandcasters (due to their high volume ord usage)and uses first wave attacks,--protomatter 20:16, 21 December 2007 (CET)

[edit] Anti-Ship

[edit] Anti-Fighers

[edit] Taking Down Base Shields

More needs to be written here but typically, you need about 1000-2000 fighters to take down the baseshield of a HW.

• not necessarily, as the rebels I've used the starting fighters to attack a borg homeworld on turn 4 where the wing destroyed about 20 borg probes before taking out the base shield after the shield went down the base AAA did a huge number on the single mixed wing and wiped it out before it could hit anything else. i do however feel that the greater your numbers the greater your odds of taking it out and surviving the AAA fire. in my gaming experience the lowest size wing odds usually begin with 100 fighters and the odds begin increasing from there.
• agreed, but it may be optimal to turn of the shield if you think there will be fighter attacks as the have a very good chance to wipe out the fighters before they destroy the shield. I have done sims with larger and smaller wings 1000 fighter and 10 fighter wings in quantity. The small ones never seem to get the base shield so that is where I got to 1000 fighter wings but perhaps multiple 100 fighter wings is more effective.

[edit] Exotic Techs

none of the exotic apply to fighter with the exceptions of a small few.the pros and cons are listed below

[edit] Exotic Tech Pro's

[edit] Stealth Fighters

In general this decreases your fighter wing sensor image by 90% and is very useful for free floating wings that can sneak up on unsuspecting opponents. this basically has no real effect for docked wings. but it does seem to act as a cloaking device for free floating wings while moving through space.

• There have been several attempts to fix this broken exotic Tech, but none has been able to fix it to date. Worthless until fixed.
• EE will see right through this as they have the dark sense.

[edit] Nem Shields

This tends to leave a bitter taste in my mouth, as it does not support what you think it might. In the client it says immunity to Nemesis Torpedoes, but immunity is used as an incorrect way of describing the effects. It actually should read reduces the effect of nemesis torpedo hits. Here are the details:

• The Nem Shield Tech protects 50% of your fighters from being destroyed by Nemesis Torpedoes.
• The Emipre's fighters enjoy 80% protection using the Nem Shield Tech.
• Aczanny fighters have a natural 30% to 70% protection from Nemesis Torpedoes and buying Nem Shields exotic tech does them no good at all.

[edit] Fighter ECM Box

Defeats anti fighter computers and energized sand. supposedly someone did some research and discovered that it does not defeat energized sand. but heres what it says.

• Aids fighters against the effects of certain other Exotic Techs.
• Anti-Fighter Computer 3x PD range negated (normal range restored).
• Anti-Fighter Computer PD attack bonus reduced 25%.
• Anti-Fighter Computer causes fighter armor to be bypassed only 30% of the time.
  • Without Anti-Fighter Computer, odds remain at the normal level of 40%.
• Does not counter Energized Sand Casters.

[edit] ET Con's

[edit] PD Boost

This increase the rate of fire for some point defenses, so if the boost is to ENEMY anti-fighter PD then you will quickly find yourself losing fighters much more rapidly than in previous battles. heres the details

• Point defense on your ships charge 50% faster.
  • PD can't fire faster than 1, so this ET is not so useful PD with a charge rate already of 1. Your flakes and turbo laser won't fire any faster after tick 300. Before tick 300 there's only a change event every third turn so there every change rate has to be multiplied with the factor 3.
• Additionally PD Boost improves your odds to hit enemy fighters.

[edit] Energized Sand

Causes Sand Casters to be more powerful when fired on ships and fighters. heres the details:

• Sand Shields are ignored 80% of the time.
• Racial resistances to Sand Casters by Fighters of the Evil Empire and Robots are ignored 80% of the time.
• Sand Casters gain +25 to accuracy odds.
• Sand Casters gain +50 Shield Drain.
• Sand Casters gain +2000 Armor Arc.
• Sand Casters deal +20 System damage.
• Concussion Rockets can shoot Sand Caster shots down only 30% of the time (instead of 60%).

[edit] Anti-Fighter Computer

Totally makes your wings inept/obsolete. If your opponent has this tech, its time to give up on fighters and build ships instead as it costs 450,000 credits and is easily maintained with 20,000 per turn. Unless however you can afford the fighter ECM Box which partially disables ET, heres the details:

• Anti-fighter PD range increased x3.
• Anti-fighter PD odds increased by 30.
• Odds of bypassing fighter armor increased from 40% to 60%.
• Prevents 70% of fighter beams from actually firing from beyond a range of 60.
• Prevents 90% of fighter missiles from actually firing from beyond a range of 120.
• Fighter ECM Box can partially counter its effects.

[edit] Countering Fighters

Fighter Races need a very strong economic base to put out fighters and when they do the put them out in astronomical numbers. There are reasons for that. Fighter are no where near as cost effective as ships. In ship based contests, if the numbers are even, you both lose most of your fleets, if you have a 1.5x advantage, you might lose 10-25% of the fleet and most of the rest can be repaired. At 3x, you have virtually no losses. With fighter attacks, it is not much different except that where the initial hits on ships reduce shield power, every shot at a fighter wing reduces its effectiveness. It costs a lot more to minimize losses and replenishments are needed in greater numbers to keep on the offensive with fighters. Having played the Rebels extensively, it tends to be their ships that are more effective than the fighters. With the EE and the CoM, the fighters tend to be more effective as they have the economic base to produce the number of fighters need to do fighter based attacks.

[edit] Defensive Measures

In order of cost effectiveness

[edit] Stellar Matter Launchers

These are death to any fighter race - 40 000 Ord (4000 MC + 400 supply) , kills all fighters at long range and there is no defense (beside being docked on a carrier). You must get the Solorians early if you want to use fighters effectively.

[edit] Minefields

• Laser Minefields - These work very well and also help find those cloaked carriers
• Barbitic Minefields - Also work well and eliminate small carriers moving faster than 12 lys/turn
• Gravitonic Minefields - similar to Barb Mines but primary stops hyperspacing carriers
• Nova Barbitic Minefields - USELESS
• Web Minefields - Slow down the fighters but mostly useless

[edit] Sand Casters

Most cost effective way to kill fighters (except EE and (especially type III) Robot fighters). Figure about 1 per 100 fighters for overkill but Ordinance is required and without enough Ord, Sand Casters don't fire. Typically, you will need some Ord in Pods against a fighter race as well as large Ord storage. The most effective anti-fighter ship in my experience is the Rebel's Tranquility Class Cruiser. A plus 90 attack helps significantly and 15 evasive its mass of 850kt make it a tough target.

[edit] Point Defenses

Turbo Lasers are by far the most effective. Unfortunately, they do not hit very well. They work best on ships with a high attack bonus or with attack exotics.

[edit] Nemesis Torpedoes

Most races do not have these and in combat, you need a great number of screening ships to prevent the superweapon ship killed. Few races have this option but it is a good one especially above an important ship yard. Of course Nemesis shield mitigate this effect (50% saved and 80% for the Evil Empire). Be sure to put this on second wave to maximize the survival rate of the Ship carrying the Nemesis Torpedo.

[edit] V.S High Armor Fighter

This section is valid for Host 213 and later.

Especially Ahir and IMT type 3. Before some might complain they are too strong:

Try with

• big cheap wings (in Quick Strike and/or Close to point blank to circumvent their stand off attempt) or

a lot cheap small wings.

• GP Large Weapon (expensive but they fire from long distance, look for amphibians)
• MM PD (strong blast, good range, try in strike through)
• Nemesis Torpedo

In one-to-one fight they have really advantages, but if you send more than one unit to face the high armor fighter wing it will become better.

SC will not work as good as expected. You need a lot of them per ship (5-10) to produced a significant effect.

Gabor